Wildlife

The Wildlife Division's mission is to manage and conserve the natural and cultural resources of Texas and to provide hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation opportunities for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. To accomplish this mission, Division personnel annually conduct about 4,000 wildlife population surveys, provide recommendations concerning the management of about 1,200 vertebrate wildlife species, conduct about a dozen wildlife research studies, manage 50 wildlife management areas totaling 744,000 acres, hold public hunts on more than 230 tracts of land totaling more than 1.4 million acres, provide landowner incentives to manage for rare species, inform the public about wildlife, provide technical guidance to private landowners, and develop more than 8,200 active wildlife management plans for about 30 million acres of private lands.

Key Issues:

  • Loss and fragmentation of wildlife habitat
  • Private property issues and access to wildlife resources on private land
  •  Access and increased public use on TPWD lands
  • Assistance for private landowners (wildlife management plans, conservation easements, Landowner Incentive Program)
  • Recognizing outstanding stewardship on private land with the Lone Star Land Steward Awards program
  • Harvest-based incentives (Managed Lands Permits) to encourage habitat enhancement practices on private land
  • Improving the science behind surveys, research and recommendations
  • Threatened and endangered species issues
  • Declining hunter numbers in relation to human population growth
  • Work to assure regulations and opportunities among programs are recruitment and retention friendly to present and future hunters
  • Implement the Texas Conservation Action Plan
  • Pronghorn restoration
  • Bobwhite quail restoration
  • Lesser prairie chicken restoration
  • Federal funding (Pittman-Robertson Act, Section 6)
  • Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and other wildlife disease issues
  • Diversity in the work force
  • Safety in the workplace
  • Privatization of wildlife
  • Snow goose overpopulation
  • Eastern wild turkey restoration
  • Desert Bighorn Sheep Program
  • Invasive and exotic species impact
  • Energy development

Headquarters Location

4200 Smith School Road
Austin, TX 78744

Director

John Silovsky
Director of Wildlife
(512) 389-8012


Headquarters Staff

  • Meredith Longoria
    Deputy Director
    (512) 389-4410
  • Kevin Mote
    Private Lands and Public Hunting Program Director
    (512)  389-4395
  • Richard Heilbrun
    Wildlife Diversity Program Director
    (210) 307-0413
  • Alan Cain
    Big Game Program Director
    (830) 480-4038
  • Shaun Oldenburger
    Small Game Program Director
    (512) 389-4778
  • Julie Wicker
    Branch Chief for Administration and Research
    (512) 389-8693

Field Staff

  • Region 1 - Calvin Richardson
    Regional Director
    (432) 837-2051
  • Region 2 - Dale Prochaska
    Regional Director
    (325) 641-9234
  • Region 3 - Stephen Lange
    Regional Director
    (903) 566-1626
  • Region 4 - Len Polasek
    Regional Director
    (361) 790-0306